Egyptian authorities have detained 25 members of the opposition Muslim Brotherhood, a security official said on Monday, bringing to 39 the number of Islamists arrested in 24 hours. Eleven members of the Islamist group were arrested late on Sunday in the southern province of Beni Sueif, 120 kilometres (75 miles) south of Cairo, on charges of holding "a secret meeting," the official said. Fourteen others were detained in dawn raids in the Nile Delta province of Sharqiyah, including Abdel Aziz Abdel Qader, who heads the group's Sharqiyah office. Earlier Sunday, Egyptian security forces stormed the home of Brotherhood member Hossam Mohammed Abdel Salam in Sharqiyah and arrested 14 members on charges of holding a secret meeting and of being in possession of secret documents.
The Muslim Brotherhood is the largest and best organised opposition movement in the country but it is also officially banned, leaving it open to periodic crackdowns.
Sunday's arrests come as Egypt is set on Tuesday to close the door for candidate nominations for the election of parliament's upper house on June 11. The Muslim Brotherhood announced in April it would field 20 candidates despite constitutional amendments approved in March that specifically prohibit political activity on a religious basis.